Regional Development Officer

New Appointment of Steve Aisthorpe as Regional Development Officer

A HIGHLY experienced former mountaineering instructor is now attempting to scale new heights as he seeks to promote the Church of Scotland’s role in the North Highlands and Western Isles.
Steve Aisthorpe, who hails originally from Grimsby, Lincolnshire, has just succeeded the Rev Richard Gibbons as regional development officer for the Church of Scotland Mission and Discipleship Council.
He was welcomed by members of Inverness Presbytery at this month’s meeting.
Mr Aisthorpe (44), who lives at Kincraig, Strathspey, with his wife Liz and sons John (11) and Scott (9), works from an office in the Mission Hall in North Kessock . He served as assistant warden at the Badenoch Christian Centre in Kincraig in the mid-1980s, before working as a mountaineering instructor and guide around the Highlands, in the Alps and in the Himalayas .
"It was through visiting Nepal nine or 10 times to climb that God challenged me about the needs of that country and after a period of preparation at the All Nations Christian College, Liz and I began work with the International Nepal Fellowship, a Christian mission in Nepal, in 1995.
We served the Lord in Nepal for 12 years. That was a time of explosive church growth and civil war. For the last five years there I was director of INF and led the mission through a period of extensive change, to establish its work under local Christian leadership and management."
His main remit is to help strengthen congregations in the areas of mission and discipleship. Part of that remit, he stresses, is to make resources available to remote congregations which may not be aware of what’s on offer.
"I’ll start with a small number of local congregations who may be involved in doing something innovative," he added. "If you think there may be some way in which I can offer support, please contact me."
Mr Aisthorpe’s office telephone number is 01463 731712 and his e-mail saisthorpe@cofscotland.org.uk

The Regional Development Officer for the Presbyteries of Inverness, Ross, Sutherland, Caithness, Lewis, The Uists, Lochcarron and Skye and Lochaber is based here in Inverness, this post, currently vacant, comes under the Council of Mission and Discipleship whose remit for the church is:

• Take a lead role in developing and maintaining an overall focus for mission in Scotland, and to highlight its fundamental relationships with worship, service, doctrine, education and nurture.
• Take a lead role in developing strategies, resources and services in Christian education and nurture, recognising these as central to both mission and discipleship.
• To offer appropriate servicing and support nationally, regionally and locally in the promotion of nurturing, worshiping and witnessing communities of faith.
• To introduce policy on behalf of the church in the following areas: adult education and elder training, church art and architecture, congregational mission and development, doctrine, resourcing youth and children’s work and worship.

In the past Regional Development Officer has been involved in a servicing role to both presbyteries and congregations which has enabled him to assist congregations who are seeking renewal and development with mission as their driving force. This role also allows the Development Officer to offer additional training courses and resources to both presbyteries and congregations. Possible further development of seminars may take place in the following areas:

• Recognising and Responding to Cultural and Congregational Change
• Developing Leadership Skills
• Managing Conflict

The Regional Develpment Officer can be contacted at Mission & Discipleship Highland Office, Mission Hall, Main Street, North Kessock, IV1 3XN : Telephone number 01463 731712 - email address:

Mission Enabler - Post Vacant

The Mission Enabler works alongside the Regional Development Officer of the Mission & Discipleship Council. The Mission Enablers role is to stimulate and encourage local congregations who are seeking to bring focus to their ministry aims, objectives and priorities. This usually takes the format of four, two hour congregationally based seminars, which enables;

• a congregation to examine where they currently are in terms of their life and ministry
• examining the need for change
• determining their strategic priorities over the next four to five years
• how they are going to achieve this

The Mission Enabler's role is to assist congregations who are considering these issues.

Interested in this post contact either the Prsbytery Clerk or Rev Duncan MacPherson of the Mission Committee.
Email Address: